EDITORIAL

Build on unity of Nov. 21

The November 21 demonstration of
120,000 people on Parliament Hill was a
— for the people of Canada. Call-

ee ees by a coalition led by the
Canadian Labor Congress to protest
high interest rates, the participating
groups voiced outrage as well over lay-
offs, inflation, and military squandering.

It was a historic event, not simply be-
cause of its unprecedented size, but be-
cause of its breadth stemming from the
initiating coalition of 25 Canada-wide
organizations. It was historic because of
the unity achieved — unity of the work-
ing class, unity of the trade union move-
ment, and unity across the “dividing
lines” between organizations from diffe-
rent sectors of society.

“What is becoming increasingly clear
to a growing number of working
people,” the Communist Party says in a
resolution prepared for its coming 25th
convention, “is that capitalism stands in
the way of a solution to the crisis.

“While workers and the trade unions
are at the centre of the struggle, the crisis
policies of monopoly have stimulated
other growing movements of opposition

* it states.

~ One aspect of the unity achieved on

November 21 is central to changing the

crisis policies of the big business Liberals
and Tories alike — and that is the unity,
massively demonstrated, of workers of
French and English Canada. Preserved
and nurtured, it will serve them well in
the battles ahead.

The key requirement now is an
economic policy to come to grips with
interest rates, yes, but also with plant clo-
sures, inflation, loss of homes — all the
stark realities of a system in crisis. With-
out a drastic policy change in Ottawa,
working people will continue under the
same attacks.

The coalition which made November
21 a success needs to strengthened and
developed. Finance Minister MacEachen
seems to think that nothing was changed
by November 21. Are workers going to
let him or his government get away with
more attacks on living standards?

November 21 is supplying inspiration
and fire-power of unmatched propor-
tions. The Ontario Federation of Labor
convention is one of the first be-
neficiaries. By continuing the unity
forged in the victory of Parliament Hill,
working-class and trade union fightback
across the country can be geared to win-
ning the new policies needed now. _

A constitutional hoax

It is a crime that the dollar-grubbing

_ politicians of Ottawa and of the big busi-

ness capitals can pretend that “they”

have decided upon a constitution for
Canada.

This so-called constitution is a capital-
-ist hoax. It is a calculated document of
exploitation and denial of rights.

Of course, we have had the media
event of “unanimity”. Well, except for
the omission of the heart of the matter,
the French Canadian nation is ignored,
insulted and denied the right to self-
determination. This was the goal of the
imperialist-minded federal Liberals and
Tories from day one of the debate. They
do-not recognize the French Canadian
nation and they cannot speak for a un-
ited Canada. They have their reasons.

Then there has been the exuberant
“debate” about whether women (that
“other” sex) and Native peoples (sitting
on profitable resources) really had to be
acknowledged. Couldn’t we somehow do
our obeisance to the transnationals and
reap our rewards and bury the Natives at
least? -

What an outrage that 10 anti-labor,
anti-farmer, anti-people seat-warmers
can get together and warp our children’s
future! It has been an outrage from the
start.

How many Canadians know that when
the Soviet Union was preparing its con-
stitution a few years ago, hunreds of
thousands of suggestions were sent in

_ from tens of thousands of public meet-
ings; and that the draft was considerably
changed to correspond to these pro-
see:

The Communist Party of Canada was ©

“the only political party which demanded
that Canada draw up a made-in-Canada
_ constitution at a constitutional confer-

“ence including all'elements of society —""

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—DEC. 4, 1981—Page 4

: federal-provincial meetings,

labor, Native people, women’s organiza-
tions, and many others. | 7

_ The capitalist ruling class never, at any
moment, considered such democracy. It
would dictate that Canada (its warped
conception of Canada) would have to be
anti-French Canadian, anti-Native
peoples, anti-labor, anti-women’s equali-
ty, based on the antiquated British North
America Act. The position of the Liber-
als, the Tories and the New Democratic
Party was that not one of them put for-
ward a proposal for a genuine “*Cana-
dian” constitution.

Now we have the clown show of secret
and the
shameful parliamentary desertion of
patriotism for collusion. They have
“granted women’s rights” in section 24 of
the rights charter which can be overrid-
den by every reactionary provincial re-
gime in section 15! They grant the assur-
ance of “existing” Native rights. Existing
Native rights consist of an inordinate
share of the prison population, the right
of the RCMP to use every form of attack,
the right to poverty, junk housing, de-
prived education, inferior health care —
and degradation. Those are the “exist-
ing” Native rights.

What this vaunted constitution “deal”
‘means is that the Natives won’t get in the
way of the transnationals robbing Cana-
dians of their resources. The women
won't cost the monopolies and law mak-
ers the price of first class citizens. The
French Canadian nation will be expected
to fall in line with what the governments
of the transnationals decide.

‘Canadian workers have to face it. The
crisis-ridden system is crisis-ridden right* —
to its constitutional gymnastics. It is time

to insist upon immediate and drastic

\

Flashbacks

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Ve. OMe

25 years ago... 50 years ago... q

LIVE OR DIE
SIDE BY SIDE

A charge that too many of.our
statesmen were “swashbucklers”

grimly arranging the destruc-

tion of mankind was levelled by
Cyrus Eaton, Nova Scotia-born
iron and railway industrialist.

Appealing strongly for peace- -

ful coexistence of rival systems

of socialism and capitalism,

Eaton warned that either both
learn to live together or they will
perish side by side.

Eaton is chairman of the
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway,
the world’s largest coal carrier.
For the past two years he has
been conducting what are
termed “think sessions” at his
Pugwash, Nova Scotia _birth-
place. This year participants
from USSR, China, Israel, Ger-
many, the U.S., Britain and
France took part.

The industrialist deplored the
use of war as a means of settling
differences. “Some will say such
a method will never succeed, but
I will guarantee you: World War
Three will never succeed.” ~

Tribune,

November 26, 1956

OLD STORY
NEW METHOD

In today’s issue of the Toronto
Globe, feature space is devoted
to a long article headed “Credits
to Russia Remain as Cloud on
World Horizon”, and purport- —
ing tobea prophecy (when did —
we hear it last?) that the
economic collapse of the Soviet
Union is imminent,
cannot pay her debts, and that it

would be therefore unwise for =

capitalist enterprises to extend
further credits to the USSR.

In the first year of the USSR’s :
Five Year Plan, the capitalist —
press moved mountains to prove

‘the “fantastic charactef” of the

plan and to predict its inglorious
collapse. When evidence of its”
success became undeniable, the
cry of “dumping” and “forced
labor” was raised.

Now that this myth has been |

exploded, the mode of attack is
somewhat different. The Soviet
Union, they announce, cannot
pay her bills. Do not trade with
her. A complete blockade of the
USSR will come next.
The Worker,

November 28, 1931

Profiteer of the week

One place where the federal budget failed miserably was in
failing to clamp an excess profits tax on banks, or forcing them to
lend mortgage money at low rates. Meanwhile, the Bank of
Montreal had an after-tax profit for the year ended Oct. 31, of
$358,500,000, up from $263,200, 000 @ year earlier.

Figures used are from the company 's financial statements.

Editor —

SEAN GRIFFIN :
Business and Circulation Manager — PAT O’CONNOR

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